Gravity
by Yuugi Muto
Summary: Joey has fallen on hard times after his dueling days came to an end. How far would a young man go to make ends meet? And what will Yuugi and Yami do once they accidentally stumble across his secret double life? Feathershipping.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh and this is for entertainment only! Now that we got that squared away...on with the show!

**Side note/Warnings:** Lemon in later chapters. Drug sales and usage. (Although I don't consider marijuana a drug, but that's another story...) Violence, angst.

* * *

Video Production. The only thing Yuugi looked forward to every day at Domino High.

It certainly wasn't because he enjoyed being the star quarterback's punching bag on a daily basis. Nor was _Mystery Meat Monday_ anything to get excited about. No. His fourth class of the day was his most stimulating and intriguing class out of all of them. And Yuugi wasn't ashamed to show how much he enjoyed being there.

He always sat in the front row of the class to hear the teacher. The nerd row, if you will. It wasn't like it mattered where he sat because his friends Tristan, Joey and Yami weren't in the same class with him anyways. The most studious and stoic of students sat here, all of them fully prepared to learn and though their agendas were strictly academic, Yuugi just enjoyed the feeling he got when he was behind the lens of a camera. He hardly wanted to make a career out of this unless he really thought he could do it, but his confidence level wasn't the best.

That was due to a lot of factors.

Nevertheless, that never stopped him from wanting to learn. Maybe eventually if he knew enough information, he'd be able to put his talents to work in the real world and get hired by some big shot news media company and bring in some real dough for once. His grandpa could only make so much in his itty bitty game shop and Yuugi wanted to make him proud before he left this world.

Once again, in any event, Yuugi had the damn camera glued to his fingers at lunchtime, one that his parents bought him for Christmas this past year, recording his friends eating their food, as if it was some fascinating feat. Tristan was sitting across from him eating some watered down version of mashed potatoes, which honestly looked like baby spit-up from where Yuugi was sitting. Making a face, Yuugi held the camera up to Tristan's face and waved childishly.

"You mind doing that when I'm done?" Tristan asked, vexed when Yuugi propped the camera into his face without warning. "I swear that thing is attached to your damn hand like super glue."

Yami, who was sitting right next to Yuugi, had to concur. Though secretly he was happy that Yuugi decided to harass someone else instead of him for once.

And Joey? Only God knew where he was. He seemed to always mysteriously disappear around this time and wouldn't show up again until the following morning. It occurred so much that the other members of the gang didn't give it much thought anymore. As long as the kid was in good health, everything was peachy.

"How am I supposed to video tape my friends in their natural habitat? Just pretend I'm not here," said Yuugi gleefully.

"Natural habitat," Yami echoed, partially laughing. "Are we in some kind of jungle or something?"

"Only if you wanna be," Yuugi answered playfully in a drawl, turning the camera onto his friend. "Anything you wanna say to the world Yami?"

"Yeah, this milk is making me fart an atomic bomb."

Tristan spit out his drink and cackled maniacally immediately afterwards.

Yuugi rolled his eyes, but didn't stop recording. "Nice try Yams, but you're gonna have to do better than that."

"Oh?" Yami challenged, grabbing a handful of runny corn. "You wanna see how a food fight gets started?"

"Uhh—" but before Yuugi could scream out _no! _Yami flung the watery cuisine towards Tristan—who was still laughing by the way, so he couldn't have possibly saw what was coming his way until it was too late. Yuugi yelled out but by the time Tristan opened his eyes, the food had already hit his face. Yami grinned from ear to ear but tried to maintain his innocence as Tristan wiped the corn from his face, groaning in contempt at the slimy, wet feel of the stuff. It was disgusting.

"I told Yuugi not to do it," Yami snickered.

"What?! But I didn't—" Yuugi sputtered and shot Yami a dangerous glare before shoving the camera into his face again. "Tell the truth dammit!"

"I did," Yami shrugged, pointing to Tristan and warning Yuugi that he was about to return fire. "Heads up."

"Hey!—" Yuugi saw it coming and he ducked. Tristan had heaved two handfuls of his mashed potatoes at Yuugi but unfortunately for him, it hit Mokuba Kaiba instead.

The same Mokuba who was related to the rich as hell CEO of Kaiba Corporation.

"Oh shit." Tristan mumbled under his breath, knowing he was about to get his ass handed to him. The disgusting substance dripped from Mokuba's raven black hair to the ground. The entire cafeteria seemed to be on stand by as they all saw what Tristan just did. Yuugi and Yami stood behind him, not wanting to take the blame and damn sure wasn't going to bail Tristan out of this. Not that they could anyway.

Mokuba's eyes squinted once he heard the silence. He turned around and arched an eyebrow when he saw everyone in proximity looking at him as if he had two heads. His red Nike Air Force 1 fleece pullover hoodie was drenched with the white substance, only Mokuba didn't realize it initially. He did though once he stood up and felt the food dripping onto his Jordan CP3s that his brother just bought him recently.

Everyone, including Tristan, knew that it was about to go down. Yuugi swallowed hard and slowly backed away towards the exit of the cafeteria, which was just behind him luckily. If a fight were to break out, he wouldn't be able to afford to participate and risk breaking his camera. He hated ditching Yami and Tristan but it was either that or lose his very expensive article.

Yuugi felt like an asshole. At least since leaving Tristan there by his lonesome since he was the innocent bystander. Yuugi would make it up to him later.

He was almost home free when he felt a tug on his shoulder as he was exiting the bistro. Yuugi cringed and turned around, expecting the worse.

Luckily for him, it was only Yami.

"Going somewhere small fry?" he smirked, grabbing the camera and pushing the lens up to his face.

"Easy on the merchandise," Yuugi whined. "I just figured I'd let you and Tristan take the brunt of Kaiba's wrath and leave me scot free."

"Nice," Yami drawled sarcastically. "I knew I could count on you kiddo." He teased Yuugi's unique bangs and was almost shoved into another student when Yuugi pushed him away jokingly. That was always the best thing about Yami. He was a good sport.

A loud crash interrupted anything Yuugi was about to say after that. The two boys turned around and saw food flying everywhere about the cafeteria, hitting the windows, ceiling, any place that their eyes laid upon was completely scathed. Students from the outside actually pushed past the boys to get a bird's eye view of the action and some even entered inside to join in the melee. Due to their lack of height, Yuugi and Yami could no longer see what was going on, not to mention being forced to the back of the line.

Kids were screaming everywhere. Yuugi couldn't tell if it was from pure amusement or anger. Each sound seemed to meld into the other and it was hard to differentiate. It wasn't before long that he lost track of Yami and he was on the patio by his lonesome. Yuugi couldn't even spot where Yami was anymore.

Oh well. If he really wanted to find Yuugi that bad, he'd text him. He wasn't going to get caught up in that mess.

Chuckling to himself at the perfect getaway, Yuugi only wished Joey was here to witness it all. He just single handedly caused a food fight in the cafeteria. Good thing he had it all on tape or Joey would never believe him otherwise.

Part of Yuugi even wondered why he wanted to share something so trivial to Joey. Sure the guy was easy to amuse, but sometimes Yuugi felt a bit silly sharing his endeavors about media and film production to him, and though Joey never made him feel otherwise, Yuugi felt like a bother.

That was probably due to his lackluster confidence once again.

Joey probably caught on to it a few times, but never said anything. Whenever Yuugi wanted to videotape something, no matter how minute, Joey was always down for the cause. Tristan and Yami didn't want to always participate in Yuugi's short films but Joey loved the spotlight and being in front of the camera, so Yuugi frequently used him as a subject of his many school projects. As a matter of fact, if it weren't for Joey encouraging Yuugi, he probably wouldn't have loved film making as much as he did.

Yuugi didn't realize that he was fervently blushing. Good thing no one was around him or he'd never live this little moment down. Especially since his friends knew how he really felt about Joey. Forcing his smile to subside, he cleared his throat and his thought of Joey for the time being and continued to videotape his surroundings as if nothing had occurred. Looking into the lens as a guide, Yuugi strode deeper and deeper near the back of the school, past the classrooms and faculty lounges. He wasn't really going anywhere in particular, but he wanted to catch the outside grandeur before the bell rang to go back to class. The snow was finally melting and the temperatures were almost bearable, but not enough to go without a sweater or jacket.

"And here we have a very nervous squirrel trying to get a nut . . . sounds like someone I know," Yuugi announced loud enough so that the camera could pick up his voice, but too low for anyone else to hear. He giggled to himself as the animal stopped and stared at him for a few seconds before scurrying away. Yuugi followed the path of the rodent until it disappeared into a tree.

There wasn't much else worth videotaping around him but Yuugi still continued to walk and record the vicinity. He felt a chill down his spine when the wind unexpectedly almost knocked his small frame over and despite wearing a well to do sweater, Yuugi felt that chill to his bone.

The ongoing food fight in the cafeteria made him think of how Tristan and Yami were doing. Yuugi was in the back of the school near the brown portable classrooms. There was a baseball field to the far right of him in the outer perimeter. The field was surrounded by a fence that went all the way around the boundaries, separating the school property from the streets. Evidently so no one else could leave without permission.

Yuugi had a secret yearning for baseball. Obviously not to play, but to watch on the sidelines as guys about twice his height dominated the field, and hearing that thunderous crack of the bat when it hit the ball way out of the playing field, not to mention the crowd reaction when their favorite player was able to hit a home run, winning the entire game. Yuugi loved every part of it. But unfortunately, his credentials—or lack thereof didn't allow him to play. Still . . . it didn't mean that he couldn't enjoy from the sidelines and daydream right?

He was just staring into the rust colored pasture and not looking at anything in particular when he thought he heard a noise. Yuugi shook his head and felt his heart drop a little when the sound startled him. He looked around and initially saw nothing and concluded that it was probably another squirrel or something. He held up his camera and continued to tape his surroundings, even down to the benches in the dugout near the far corner of the field. There was a taller commode behind it, probably the shower and locker room for the baseball team. Who knew. Not like Yuugi's ever been inside. Except for that one time . . .

Wait . . . there it was again. Yuugi paused his taping and looked towards the source of the strange noise and assumed that it was coming from the same dugout, but he couldn't see anyone. Curiosity getting the better of him, he decided to foolishly see what was down there. Yuugi knew that he'd probably get his ass kicked or worse, killed but he figured it was worth it. Gripping the camera tightly in his hand while it was still recording, Yuugi slowly and quietly crept towards the dugout, scowling when the wind picked up velocity and made the sand blow in his face and temporarily lose his sight. Deciding that dusting the sand off wasn't important right now, he kept going. His heart rate climbed with each passing second and adrenaline pumped and cascaded throughout his body, ready for whatever was in here.

When Yuugi reached the first step that lead to a descending one below it, he heard the noise increase in volume. He was now able to tell that there was a human back here. Possibly two, except Yuugi couldn't make out what was being said. Swallowing hard and breathing shallowly, he took one step down and cringed when the platform made an obnoxious squeak. Yuugi held his breath and waited for his cover to be blown but nothing happened and the talking continued.

That was close. Yuugi began to sweat despite the cool weather around him. Nervousness crept in his system, but he couldn't stop wondering what was down there. Apparently there was an alcove that Yuugi couldn't see before from where he was standing but the closer he got, the more clearer he could distinguish two people in front of each other, rather close. One of them had wild, almost disheveled hair, unorganized and random. Yuugi knew that hairstyle anywhere. It _had_ to be Joey.

But who was the other person? Yuugi couldn't distinguish. And his voice didn't sound all that familiar either. Yuugi clutched his pounding heart so he could listen to the conversation.

" . . .And I just got some new recruits."

"After only a day that I gave it to you? Damn boy, I seem to have underestimated you."

"Damn right ya did. And I'm nearly done selling half of this shit. I sold da other half before lunch."

"And when do you plan on selling the other half?"

"Patience, patience . . . there's plenty of hungry kids on this campus."

Selling? What were they selling? Yuugi tiptoed a little closer to get more information.

"That it is. If this keeps up I may even move you into bigger quarters. How would you like doing this full time?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, let's not get ahead of ourselves here. It's only been a few weeks I started doing dis. But . . . I'll keep my options opened."

"Think about it Joe. Do you make this kinda shit workin' a nine to five? I bet your old man couldn't cough up this kinda dough."

"He's never around so I wouldn't know."

"In any event . . ." the unknown person interrupted before the conversation got too awkward. "Keep selling shit the way you've been doing and it won't be long. You won't even need this school shit anymore."

"Yeah that's what I'm hoping in the long run." Joey sounded sad. Yuugi knew that Joey was having some financial problems but . . . he couldn't possibly . . .

He kept his cool and continued to eavesdrop, because part of him now wanted to know what Joey was doing behind these bleachers.

"Good." Yuugi heard an exchange but it was still too dark to see _what _was being exchanged. "Meet me back here tomorrow. Same time. I'm sure you won't have a problem selling this Mary to your fellow student body."

Yuugi couldn't believe what he just heard. Forgetting that he was supposed to be in hiding, he gasped and lost his footing. Pain shot through his body as he fell down the rest of the wooden stairwell and onto the chalky ground. Joey and the unknown assailant shot their attention towards the intruder. When Yuugi hit the ground he cried out in agony, but then quickly backed up towards the opposite end when he made eye contact with Joey.

"You know this buttinsky?" the guy asked Joey.

"Yeah . . ." Joey drawled, narrowing his eyes down at Yuugi, then to the other guy, and then back down to Yuugi again.

Yuugi was inwardly panicked. Joey seemed different. He wasn't the same happy go lucky person that Yuugi was used to seeing all the time. His demeanor appeared darker and his attitude more suspicious than usual. Panting and scared, Yuugi didn't know whether or not to run or stay but his legs felt like jello and he couldn't move.

"Hey!"

Another unknown authoritative voice shook the three boys into a panic. The nameless student hauled ass the other way out of the dugout and disappeared before Yuugi could even utter a word. Joey shoved something into his pocket—Yuugi couldn't decipher what it was—and straightened out his attire before they were confronted by a teacher that discovered them here. Somehow.

"Wheeler, Muto, what in God's name are you doing here? You know you're forbidden from this area during school hours!"

"Uhh sorry Mr. Rogue," Joey muttered, awkwardly scratching the back of his shaggy hair. "Me and Yuugi eat lunch here every day. We didn't know it was against the rules."

"Well now you do," the teacher scolded. "If I catch you two here again, you're getting detention for a week. Is that clear?"

"Crystal," Joey assured, with a wink and the 'ok' symbol with his index and thumb.

Mr. Rogue rolled his eyes at Joey and glanced at Yuugi, who appeared as though he'd seen a ghost. "You okay Muto?"

Yuugi nodded nervously, grabbed Joey's arm and walked out of the dugout and towards the back of the school hallways again.

When they were out of his view, Yuugi was finally able to calm down. He took a brief glimpse of Joey, whose face was unreadable. "Joey what the hell was that?"

"Nothing that you need to concern yourself about."

He sounded so cold . . . so. . . un-Joey like. What changed?

"Joey I know what I saw. Why are you selling weed in the back of the school?"

No answer. Just a blank stare.

"Joey please—"

Yuugi's collar was snatched up so hastily before he could finish his entire sentence. He then let out an "oof!" as he was shoved hard against the brick wall, feeling Joey's hot breath in his face. It was the first time during their entire friendship that Yuugi felt genuinely afraid that his best friend was going to hurt him.

Joey leaned down to Yuugi's level, pressing his body into his, to the point where Yuugi could hardly breathe. It was such a different interaction than the one Yuugi was used to, and he had no idea what to feel. Joey's eyes were so menacing, so intimidating that Yuugi had to look away. He couldn't take being looked at like that.

"You didn't see shit," Joey mumbled, snorting almost. He had a handful of Yuugi's hair and Yuugi stared in horror in disbelief as he watched his best friend change into a totally different person.

Thankfully the bell rang. Joey released his hold on Yuugi as the cafeteria doors opened and students poured into the hallways and corridors. Yuugi was frozen in place, not able to take his eyes off Joey as he turned his back and walked away from him to class, as he normally did every day when they hung out. But an uneasy feeling settled in Yuugi, one that was so profound that it made his stomach hurt. His mood was considerably ruined and he had no desire to go back to class—the same one that he shared with Joey. But he couldn't just leave. Grandpa would do some serious interrogation.

"Yuugi!"

Yami's familiar face came into view. But Yuugi didn't budge. When his friend was at a close enough distance, Yami knew something was wrong. Yuugi looked nervous, apprehensive, worried down right scared.

"Something wrong buddy?"

"Huh?" Yuugi shook himself from his trance and stared at Yami with vacant violet eyes. He didn't even notice him standing there.

"Did something bad happen?" Yami asked again.

Yuugi swallowed hard. His throat felt absolutely dry and he was dying for some water. But at the same time, he couldn't tell Yami what he'd just saw. He was still trying to gather and figure out the information himself.

This couldn't be happening. His best friend turning into a drug dealer?

"No," Yuugi finally answered, deadpanned. "Nothing at all."


End file.
